Casement windows — wind damage in open position?
user-958947
| Posted in General Questions on
I have noticed that the wind tends to move the windows around some when open (visible and audible). My concern is that, at some point, the window or mechanism would be damaged—-like bent or ripped off. I asked the manufacturer for some guidelines on allowable wind speeds in the open position, or a preferred opening amount (other than zero) for max strength . They have nothing to offer
Does anyone know of general guidelines for this? What good is an operable window if you’re worried about it being damaged when open?
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Replies
John,
I think common sense is all you need in this situation. If the wind is strong enough to bend the hinges on your casement window, it's obviously so windy that no sensible person would want to leave the windows open -- much less open to 90 degrees.
If a hurricane is blowing, for goodness sake, shut the windows.
If you're leaving the house all day, most people close the windows for security. But if you live in a safe neighborhood and want to leave the windows open when you are gone, just open them a crack -- enough for ventilation, but not open 90 degrees. I think your windows will be fine.
Martin, I understand the extremes. I was looking more for rule-of-thumb safe thresholds .
The home is under construction, so sometimes I need to open windows for human comfort.
Winds of 20mph are common here, and do rattle the open windows ---obviously more so when gusting. From a practical perspective, is the rocking action causing damage to the window? Is it damaging the hardware or wallowing out the connections? Once something bends or breaks, then I'll know not to do that anymore, but I was trying to be a little more proactive.
Regarding open position, I think you are saying less open is stronger.